Saturday, 25 June 2016

My Top Epilating Tips

For around a year now I've been using an epilator (I use this model from Braun) to remove my leg hair. It's something I haven't talked about on here purely because I feel it's the kind of thing that needs to be thoroughly tested to see any results! For those of you who don't know, epilating is essentially plucking out body hair very quickly, and tends to last for about two to three weeks without much hair growing back. Now that I feel I've got a hang of this torturous hair removal device, it's time to talk my top tips...

Exfoliate >> Unfortunately, pulling hair straight from the follicle means that ingrown hairs can be a big thing if you don't pay attention. Before I epilate I make sure to give my legs a good exfoliate so the blades can actually grab all of the hairs. I also try to exfoliate every few days so that the hairs growing back don't get caught under the skin - what a lovely image. It's not something I ever used to bother with, but believe me when I say that exfoliation is essential! It's also worth mentioning that following up the exfoliation and epilation with a good body lotion is key for super smooth legs, ahh.

Hair grows in cycles >> So don't be disheartened when you epilate all of your legs to have half of the hair grow back the next day. I found that I needed to epilate for a few days in a row until I had completely hair free days. Because of the different cycles of hair growth you do need to keep on top of things, but I promise that it becomes less hassle a couple months in when your hair begins to thin out and you need to epilate less frequently. A year in and I actually have sections of my legs that rarely grow hair at all!

Get it over with >> Epilating is painful. Yes, you do get used to it over time, but it's still bloody painful. I find that the back and sides of my legs are easier to handle so I always speed through these parts, and it's my shins and my ankles that give me grief. Take little breaks if you need to but try to power through the pain as it will all be over quicker! And again, if you stick with it then less hair grows back over time so there is less pain overall.

I'm sure I could go into more detail on my results and thoughts on epilating so if you are interested in hearing more then please let me know! Although at first you do need to put in more work (and deal with more pain) than shaving or waxing, I really feel like it gives the smoothest and longest lasting effect out of every hair removal trick I have tried on my legs. I'm also newly trying out Tend Skin which is a lotion that should help prevent ingrown hairs, something I'm sure I'll update you all on in the future. Now I just need to attempt epilating the underarms... I'm wincing at the thought already.